<p>a) The biggest single reason higher ed costs have increased is staff wages and benefits. There's simply no way around it. For example, 57% of Swarthmore's operating budget is staff and faculty expense. Health insurance has risen at more than double the rate of inflation for years -- a huge expense in such a labor intensive endeavor.</p>
<p>b) You can't simply ask why it is more expensive to "teach English". The number of programs is constantly increasing. For example, since I was in school we've seen college's add computer science, Japanese, Chinese, Arabic/Middle Eastern studies, African studies, Latin American studies, Asian studies, Film studies. Simply put, the required offerings are much larger than 40 years ago when white males studied white males in the US and Europe and called it a day. You can argue that colleges don't have to teach Middle Eastern or Chinese studies, I suppose. Or, you could argue that maybe colleges should drop "obsolete" programs like Latin and Greek. </p>
<p>c) Student support services have grown immensely. In the 1960's, it was basically sink or swim....and the low graduation rates at top colleges reflected that. Today you have significant psych counselling services (1700 individual "sessions" at Swat last year), plus much larger dean's staff, advising staffs, etc. You could argue that it would be better to just let students flounder. That would save a lot of money.</p>
<p>d) As marite points out, technology costs are significant...and basically non-existant 40 years ago. Swarthmore spends more than $1000 per student on Information Technology. What do each of you spend each year on your broadband internet connection? Now, add the cost of staff and academic and public computers and maintaining a network for 2500 users. Could colleges go back to the days when student had occasional access to the school's "mainframe"? I suppose.</p>
<p>e) And, finally, let's not forget the cost of free continental breakfast in the dorms:</p>
<p>
[quote]
The brainchild of Mertz and Alice Paul RAs, the idea to provide breakfast for residents affected by the construction was successfully pitched to President Al Bloom at the annual RA dinner. The idea was proposed by Mertz RA Erick Zwick ’07, who shared a table with Bloom that night. According to Zwick, the president and the RAs had been brainstorming ideas to reduce the inconvenience of living next to a construction site. “We suggested having later classes or providing breakfast. [Bloom] was surprisingly receptive to that idea,” Zwick said. </p>
<p>The RA dinner was held on a Wednesday and the food was provided the following Monday.
[/quote]
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